The Phanatic Magazine
Leading up to a highly unanticipated NBA Finals, many would say this series is for the dogs. I agree.
Be that as it may, I’m pulling for the Cavaliers.
Not because I like Cleveland, or am a LeBron fan, or even because I enjoy watching the team play (which I, in fact, don’t - they’re often times disorganized and look more lost than Paris Hilton in a prison shower). Instead, I’m backing them for three reasons:
They have practically no chance of winning
I’m tired of seeing the Spurs winning
The city of Cleveland hasn’t won anything since 1964
The preceding three criteria put me in a certain category of fan that I believe many in this area can subscribe to – and more by nature than by choice.
Yes, it’s true. My name is Jeff Glauser and I’m an Underdog Supporter.
This didn’t happen overnight. It actually took, oh, 24 years or so for it to come to full realization. In fact, there was a time before then that I (gasp!) pulled for the Yankees (in my defense, I was six years old, living in New York at the time and didn’t know what the word “empathy” meant yet). However, when you exert years of fruitless passion for a seemingly cursed hometown team, you gradually begin to feel for fans in a similar predicament.
Those aforementioned reasons for my pulling for the Cavs in this series seem to be the primary traits of any ‘Dog Supporter. For example, they enjoy Cinderella stories. They despise dynasties (unless, of course, it’s their own team, but that, of course, never happens). And they empathize with other fans who have never experienced the pinnacle of glory with their respective favorite franchises.
Other ‘Dog Supporter facts:
Geography makes a difference. It’s not the players who we determine are most deserving of a championship, it’s the fans. For example, I backed the Senators in the Stanley Cup for absolutely no other reason than because people in hockey-hungry Ottawa deserved it, whereas those in the O.C. could care less (“Oh, we won? Cool. Wait… won’t a parade make traffic worse? Whatever, surf’s up!”). This factor also made transformed me into temporary admirer of the Seahawks, Jazz, and Sacramento Kings in recent years.
History counts. I could almost tolerate all of the whining and overzealousness of Red Sox fans in 2004 (even if their drought paled in comparison to the 1980 Phils). Similarly, it was nice to see the White Sox get theirs the following year. Presently, I can even attest to being a closet Cubs fan (even if their desperate shopping spree in the offseason is already backfiring). Even the Clippers – the red-headed stepchild of Los Angeles – gets some sympathy pains from me (but then I recall that the city still has the Lakers and indifference sets in once more).
Being a ‘Dog Supporter means that sometimes your allegiances will change based on the recent success of a former ‘Dog. For example, I pulled for the Spurs in 1999, because they fit Category 3 (plus, they were playing the Knicks, so further ‘Dog Supporter rationalization would note that New Yorkers have celebrated far too many championships as it is).
Overall, pulling for Cinderella seems to be the purest factor for the ‘Dog Supporter. Most of us were certainly willing to let our office pools tank last year at the expense of George Mason going on an unprecedented extended dance. We love a good a feel-good story.
(Perfect personal example: Even if hell freezes over one day and a Philly team gets to the promised land, that team will still be hard pressed to surpass my all-time favorites: The 1993 Phillies and the 2001 Sixers. The cards were stacked against both. The squads were delightfully human. Heart trumped general talent. Simply enough, it was friggin’ sweet.).
One day – probably not anytime soon – my support for the ‘Dog will not be as great. One day, perhaps my thirst for the upset will be quenched based on a certain void getting filled. One day…
But no reason in dwelling on that – it’s time to let the ‘Dogs out. Go Cavs!
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